Luigi Nono was a leading figure in post-war serialism, emerging in the 1950s alongside Karlheinz Stockhausen & Pierre Boulez as one of the era's defining avant-garde composers. Composed for 2-channel magnetic tape in 1968, Contrappunto reflects Nono's engagement with international student movements and opposition to the Vietnam War. Drawing on Adriano Banchieri's early 17th-century madrigal-comedy, Nono reimagined it's vocal focus, period materials, and parodic spirit through a contemporary lens. Roland Kayn's Cybernetics III foresaw major developments in synthesis, computing, sampling & sequencing, anticipating profound changes in electronic music. The Avantgarde Series is mastered & cut from the original analog 1/4 inch, 2-track master tapes by Rainer Maillard & Sidney Claire Meyer at Emil Berliner Studios. Limited and numbered, featuring original artwork and a newly designed, beautifully crafted collector's sleeve with new liner notes by Bradford Bailey, and pressed on 180g vinyl.
Limited five 180gm vinyl LP set. Herbert von Karajan's recording of Wagner's 'Die Walkure' features an outstanding cast, including Austrian star soprano Gundula Janowitz (Sieglinde), legendary bass-baritone Thomas Stewart (Wotan), Jon Vickers (Siegmund), and the dazzling Regine Crespin (Brunnhilde). It captivates with it's expressive range and lyrical accents. Karajan skillfully allows his orchestra, the Berliner Philharmoniker, to take a back seat to showcase the great singers. As classical music magazine Gramophone aptly puts it, even half a century after it's release, his recording, "still has surprises in store." For the first time, the ORIGINAL SOURCE SERIES uses the original stereo master tape, a two-track audio tape, as it's source. Remastered by the Emil Berliner Studios on 180g virgin vinyl by Optimal and housed in a 5-LP lift-lid box set. Limited and numbered.
Kristian Bezuidenhout and the Freiburger Barockorchester pursue their lively exploration of Mozart's concertos. From the early impulses of the Concerto No.5 K.175 to the incandescent drama of the Concerto No.20 K.466, via the daring formal novelties of the Concerto No.14 K.449, these works reveal a myriad facets of Mozart's genius, always wondrously inventive, theatrical and profoundly modern.
These recordings, originally released in the early 1980s, are foundation stones for the rediscovery of Marc-Antoine Charpentier's sacred works that was set in motion by William Christie et Les Arts Florissants. For the most part devoted to Christmas music, these pieces radiate all Charpentier's fervor, freshness and elegance, showing him to be truly French, yet nurtured by the sunlight of Italy.
Emilie Mayer's works bear witness to an indomitable personality, despite having languished for so long in the shadow of her male peers. The musicians of the Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin have resolved to do her justice with this revelatory symphonic triptych of recordings. They begin with two of her most remarkable works played on period instruments, including a wondrous Bluthner piano handpicked by the soloist here, Alexander Melnikov.
Combining the vigorous forces of the Insula Orchestra and Insula camerata, Laurence Equilbey revives a historic tradition: that of the double orchestra. Beethoven, who was familiar with this principle, composed with the great festivals in mind at which orchestras could muster large numbers, often exceeding a hundred players. A unique musical experience.
Mozart's piano sonatas reveal an extraordinary range of character, from effortless lyricism to profound emotional intensity. In the third volume of his complete survey, pianist Jae-Hyuck Cho performs three contrasting sonatas which form an arc from light into shadow, before emerging into light once more. Opening with the luminous Sonata in C major, K. 330, the program moves to the dramatic A minor Sonata, K. 310, one of Mozart's most emotionally charged keyboard works, before concluding with the freshness and wit of the G major Sonata, K. 283. Together, these three sonatas reveal Mozart's ability to combine elegance, theatrical instinct and deep humanity. Cho approaches these works with a distinctly vocal perspective, shaping each phrase as though sung and drawing on Mozart's close relationship with opera. The result is a performance of warmth, clarity and expressive freedom that allows each sonata's individual voice to emerge while revealing the broader narrative that connects them. This third instalment continues a thoughtfully conceived cycle that places musical character and storytelling at it's heart.
Saehyun Kim's recording debut will pay homage to the first European city where he ever performed, also the home city of his new label: Paris. "It was where my life changed," he says. The program is dedicated to solo piano works by Gabriel Faure and Frederic Chopin, two iconic figures in the history of the City of Light who helped shape the innovative musical landscape of the 19th and early 20th centuries. While Chopin has long been a part of the young pianist's repertoire, his interest was piqued in Faure more recently, while preparing to perform in Paris; he admires the music's mesmeric "charm and delicacy", contrasted with the riveting "poetry and drama" of his Romanticist predecessor. The program features Chopin's set of 12 Etudes, Op. 25, alongside one of his most beloved nocturnes (No. 8). From Faure's early repertoire, he has included the Barcarolle No. 1, Valse-Caprice No. 1, Impromptu No. 2, as well as his very own arrangement of "Apres un reve", part of the Trois Melodies set written for voice and piano. In a final nod, the album closes with French singer-songwriter Charles Trenet's dreamy "En Avril a Paris" (1953).
From the spirited wit of the Viennese stage to the quiet sanctuary of his most private sonatas, this collection captures the multifaceted genius of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Journey through the vibrant energy of The Marriage of Figaro, the ethereal dialogue of the Flute and Harp Concerto, and the heartbreaking solemnity of his final Requiem. Whether it is the playful charm of Papageno's aria or the sublime tranquility of the Piano Concerto No. 23, each track has been carefully curated to showcase a legacy that remains as vivid today as it was over two centuries ago.
Once established in London, Handel devised a new kind of music drama that won over the English audience and modernized the operatic stage: the oratorio. Revolutionizing English traditions, he imported the drama and color of Italy, and the voices of it's greatest operatic castrati. Carlo Vistoli now presents this heritage, reviving some of the greatest Handel arias first sung in London by his illustrious compatriots.
Winner of the 2024 Joseph Joachim International Competition, 19-year old Canadian violinist Jacques began playing the violin at the age of two, and has performed across North America, Europe, and Asia. His debut album for Warner Classics offers a varied repertoire for violin - featuring works by Bartok, Brahms, Ysaye, Gershwin and more - and balances technical brilliance with intimate, lyrical moments for a captivating listening experience.
These two albums, originally released in 2015 and 2016, are among the finest of the benchmark recordings that Brad Lubman and his Ensemble Signal have devoted to Steve Reich. They reveal in their inexorable pulse and clarity of texture all the profundity of this music. Far beyond brilliant precision, here is a gripping sense of radiant vitality - a welcome return to the catalog to celebrate the 90 years of this Grand Old Man of the music of our time.
As an admirer of Cherubini, an attentive follower of Spontini's dramatic daring, and a critical but deeply fascinated witness of Rossini's public success, Beethoven was shaping his language in a musical landscape in which the symphony was in constant dialogue with the opera. This fertile state of tension has been newly uncovered by Enrico Onofri and the Munchener Kammerorchester: heard alongside Italian overtures of the time, Beethoven's great symphonies appear newly charged with a theatrical urgency, dramatic impulse and unparalleled intensity.
September 15th 2026 will mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of one of the most influential conductors of the 20th century: Bruno Walter (1876-1962). This comprehensive box set brings together his complete HMV and Columbia Graphophone (Columbia UK) recordings. Spanning the 78-rpm era from 1924 to 1939, this collection also features the landmark 1949 magnetic tape recording of Mahler's Kindertotenlieder featuring Kathleen Ferrier, offering the first release of two previously unpublished takes. To ensure the highest fidelity, the finest available materials have been sourced, including pristine test pressings on vinyl from original metal work and near-mint superior commercial pressings. After undergoing high-definition digitization, the recordings were meticulously restored by Art & Son Studio in Annecy, adhering to the most rigorous modern standards to provide a superlative listening experience. This collection finally sheds a truer and more precise light on the artistry and genius of Bruno Walter.
Lise Davidsen Edward Gardner London Philharmonic Lise Davidsen performs the arias from five of Verdi's greatest operas: MacBeth, Un ballo in Maschera, La forza del destino, Don Carlo, and Aida. Through the chronological sequencing of compositions, Davidsen explores the pinnacle of 19th-century Italian opera, leading us through the journey of Verdi's emotional and dramatic development. From the psychological intensity of MacBeth to the grandeur and tragedy of Aida, Davidsen brings her vocal power and remarkable nuance to five of Verdi's greatest masterpieces, illuminating the composer's unmatched gift for drama, passion, and human conflict. "Her dark soprano is simply outstanding, the attack on the notes so clean, rock solid, seemingly effortless," Mark Pullinger on her role as Elisabetta in Verdi's Don Carlos, 2023. This album will be released a week ahead of her opening of the Met season as Lady MacBeth in Verdi's MacBeth in 2026.
Friendship Survival Guide brings together the evocative talents of Adam Wiltzie and the late Johann Johannsson in a deeply atmospheric and emotionally resonant collaboration. Combining ambient drones, cinematic textures, and minimalist beauty, the album creates an immersive listening experience that reflects both artists' shared gift for crafting expansive and moving soundscapes.
Ludovico Einaudi returns with 'The Summer Portraits: Live.' Recorded live in London at the Royal Albert Hall in 2025, this new collection includes favorites from The Summer Portraits as well as much-loved classics such as "I Giorni," "Nuvole Bianche" and "Experience." Pressed on transparent blue & transparent pink color vinyl, 2LP.
